US. President Donald Trumpâs executive order granting Afrikaners refugee status and facilitating their resettlement in the U.S. has resulted in over 17,500 emails, calls, and messages from South Africans to the South African Chamber of Commerce in the US (SACCUSA), causing their website to crash. Neil Diamond, the President of SACCUSA, told Biznews in an interview that they have been overwhelmed by these inquiries. Diamond expressed concern about the impact of Trumpâs actions on South Africa’s economy, stating that the impact on food security is not being taken seriously. He called for âall hands on deckâ to resolve the crisis, emphasising that South Africa now needs one voice. Diamond, who is heading to Washington to lobby South Africa’s case, has called on President Cyril Ramaphosa to join the business community in the United States for roundtable discussions with the US President and the Secretary of State.
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Edited transcript of the interview ___STEADY_PAYWALL___
Linda van Tilburg (00:02.755)
U.S. President Donald Trump has issued an executive order to halt financial aid to South Africa, following through on a threat he made earlier. Trump stated that the decision was in response to South Africa’s new land expropriation law. Additionally, he mentioned that Afrikaners experiencing racism could seek resettlement in the U.S. Well, to help us navigate the implications of this executive order and explore how South Africa might mitigate its negative impacts, we have Neil Diamond from the South African Chamber of Commerce in the US (SACCUSA) joining us from Atlanta. Hi, Neil. Thanks for joining us on a Sunday evening of all times.
Before we get into the commercial implications of this, tell us, I heard you’ve been inundated by calls from South Africa wanting to immigrate to the US?
Neil Diamond (01:06.092)
Well, Linda, thank you very much for that question. The first few hours after the news broke and it went live, we received thousands of emails, text messages, WhatsApps, and Facebook Messenger messages, to the extent that our system actually crashed.
We couldn’t deal with just the sheer volume that was coming through. What we have done is we’ve subsequently put a link on our website where people can register for information only. It’s not a register for benefits or anything to become a refugee. It’s just so that we can share information. At this stage, we’ve had outreaches of over 17,000 South Africans expressing interest in becoming refugees in the United States of America.
Linda van Tilburg (01:57.074)
Are they all Afrikaans?
Neil Diamond (02:00.14)
Well, to be honest with you, how do you test an Afrikaner? I’ve got an English name and an English surname, but if we start conversing in Afrikaans, you will hear that I’m a native speaker. I grew up Afrikaans, went to an Afrikaans primary school, high school. I’m a product of the Rand Afrikaans University. So, you know, how are we fully going to define that? I don’t know if they’re all Afrikaans. Most of the emails I received were in English, and most of them were on behalf of their families.
Up and above the number that I have mentioned, which is well over 17,500 and we can times that by about four if we look at families and added family members. At this stage, we’re estimating about 50,000 people reached out to us in the last two days, warm bodies that would like to move to the United States from South Africa, and that’s shocking.
Linda van Tilburg (02:54.912)
So that might actually, how much. with their families?
Neil Diamond (02:59.49)
Well, we’re saying 50,000 with their families because we’re talking about a figure of 17 and a half thousand that have reached out to us. But there’s no way of quantifying this. Further to that, this is honestly hot off the press. This happened at 5 p.m. U.S. time on the East Coast that we got this news or that this news broke. This news broke in South Africa during the nighttime of Saturday morning.
Neil Diamond (03:29.466)
We’ve got no further information other than the executive order. We don’t know how it’s going to be implemented, what the scale and scope of that will be, or how we are going to define Afrikaners. That is all information that we are still waiting for as the South African Chamber of Commerce in the US. We have reached out to the US mission in South Africa.
We wrote a letter to the chargĂ© d’affairesâas you know, the US ambassador to South Africa returned early Januaryâto inquire as to the process that would be followed to firstly get South Africans onto a list somewhere, and then secondly what would be the criteria, how would they adjudicate that, what’s the process that will be followed to resettle South Africans to the United States. So, at this stage, there’s not much that we can share. We know that the impact is going to be severe, and we know that the overwhelming number that have expressed interest will only grow in the coming weeks and days.
Linda van Tilburg (04:29.522)
It seems that some South Africans are actually upset about the invitation and are saying, want to say, we are Afrikaners that staying, we don’t want to be associated with that. But others see it as an opportunity. So people view it differently.
Neil Diamond (04:50.158)
Well, I think what we have pleaded with our South African brothers and sisters is to at least maintain decorum and respect for one another. Both you and I are South Africans that are no longer resident within South Africa, and we should not denounce those that have got the desire to join us in other parts of the world. At the same time, we respect those that decide to stay because South Africa is an amazing country. It’s the country of our birth. That is the country where we all would like to be, and we miss it every single day of our lives.
We want to at least allow those that have come to a juncture in which they’ve said, our futures, and our strategic direction does not align with where South Africa is at this stage. A very easy way to explain it, I wasn’t born in Nelspruit. I love to say that I wasn’t from Nelspruit, but I was born to be in Nelspruit. I came to the US from Nelspruit, but I was born somewhere else in South Africa, but I got to a day where I decided I did not want to be in that community anymore. I don’t align to what is in that community, and I decided to relocate to Nelspruit.
There are many people that have moved out of Gauteng down to the Eastern Cape, Southern Cape, and Western Cape. People that have moved down to KwaZulu-Natal, people that have moved up north. It doesn’t mean that there’s something wrong with you or that you’ve got a hatred for Gauteng because you now are just living somewhere else in the country. The same would apply for a South African who has decided that they no longer want to live within the borders of the country.
Being a South African is not a geographical space. You’re a South African, I’m a South African. I may not necessarily be within the boundaries of the country. So, I think in that regard, we don’t need to cut one another to pieces on social media and within the public domain. We can just allow one another enough space, as we did back in 1994 when our country became a democracy.
We opened the doors for everyone to say this is a new country with new parameters, with new rules. South Africa is becoming a new nation of people living across the globe, in Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Great Britain, Europe, and America. So, we’d like to just ask people to respect one another while we are moving through this transition, and we don’t know how it’s going to play out yet, but we think a lot of animosity is happening which is unnecessary.
Linda van Tilburg (07:30.705)
Let’s look at the business implications. That is serious.
Neil Diamond (07:36.214)
On the business side, we are severely concerned about the impact. So let me just unpack it for your viewers. The binational trade between South Africa and the United States was at $21 billion in 2023, with exports from South Africa being roughly about $8 billion dollars and imports making up the balance about $13 billion. Just under AGOA, the US Africa Growth and Opportunity Act, ‘s not a trade agreement – it’s a legislative framework allowing African manufacturers to export tariff-free to the United States – the exports amounted $6.5 billion US dollars.
Now, if we just unpack it a little bit further, the main beneficiaries of that are South African manufacturers in the automotive sector, agriculture sector, and in the manufacturing sector. So NAMASA, which is the South African Motor Vehicle Manufacturers Association estimates that 86,000 jobs could be at risk.
Our own internal team estimates that to be about 50,000 jobs that could be at risk. The question that we ask is can South Africa afford to lose even one job? Our focus should be job creation, development, and economic growth, not job destruction, job losses.
The Reserve Bank estimated South Africa’s growth for this year to be 1.8%, and there’s an optimistic view from business that that should be expanded to an economic growth of approximately 3%. The reality is, if we lose the figures that I’ve just mentioned, and we’re talking about US dollars, if we speak about South African rands, our government delivers about R130 billion, the bilateral trade exceeds R400 billion. South Africa’s economy cannot afford to have such an impact, and that would have a severe economic hardship as a result.
When we get back to the second part of this, which is really the offer to Afrikaners to be relocated as refugees to the United States. We know that that offer was made in the context of the Land Expropriation Act. But it did not limit that only to the Land Expropriation Act. President Trump said the Act followed countless government policies designed to dismantle equal opportunity in employment, education, and business, which means any minority in South Africa that has had an adverse experience because of the colour of their skin. And let’s be honest, the last 30 years have been a very difficult transition in terms of legislation like the BEE legislation, affirmative action, employment equity, and various other legislative frameworks that put a huge cross-cut of our minority population as those that are referenced by President Trump, not just the Afrikaners.
So, let’s just stop at Afrikaner for a moment. Those that are on farms in rural communities in South Africa are really the ones that allow food security in South Africa. South Africa is one of the few countries in the southern tip of Africa that enjoys healthy food security. There’s a lesson that somebody once taught me, and that is never criticize a farmer if you have a mouth full of food.
If we lose that community that are mainly our commercial farmers or a portion of them, we actually have a situation where South Africa’s food security is at risk, and the second part of it is those that are not farmers are all within some form of a business environment, be it medical, legal, or be it in an accounting profession or be it small business owners. I do foresee this is a significant problem.
I think that the impact on the South African economy at this stage is not being viewed as serious. We are still at the stage where we’re looking at the geopolitical relationship, the political issues between South Africa and the US. We’re not even at the stage where we’re contemplating what the economic impact would be for South Africa.
Linda van Tilburg (12:18.33)
Can we look at AGOA? Are you worried that might also be scrapped? So, would that be the next thing in President Trump’s scope?
Neil Diamond (12:31.326)
As the South African Chamber of Commerce in the US, we are a vocal advocate for the inclusion of South Africa in AGOA and the continuation of South Africa in AGOA. We know that our manufacturing sector is heavily dependent on those tariff-free exports so that we can be competitive on a global market.
If we are not included in AGOA, it will have a significant impact on our country and its economy. US business have always been vested in South Africa, and US business have played a role in the transformation agenda of our country. But where things stand currently, and I think we need to be honest, we don’t even know if AGOA will exist going forward because the Trump administration made it very clear that foreign aid to all of Africa would be pending for 90 days under review, and most of that aid came from the USAID program.
Now that program has been shut down completely, the whole USAID department or agency has been shut down. So, we don’t see that that aid is going to follow through, which means by itself, or by implication, support for other areas for Africa is not going to follow through.
AGOA is due for review and revision in 2025 and based on the notes that we’ve seen out of Congress and Senate, especially the comments by Senator Ted Cruz, who is chairman of the very powerful House Subcommittee on African Affairs. It said that South Africa is under scrutiny, under more intense scrutiny. We were not in that space in 2023 when we campaigned for inclusion and a continuation of South Africa in AGOA. It was already a stretch to keep us in there. This time we’re going to need all hands on deck, and we cannot afford to go with a divided voice.
We don’t want to see the likes of AfriForum writing letters to tell the President of the United States what their views are. In South Africa, we need to have one voice when it comes to business. We don’t want to see the likes of the EFF chanting for white blood to flow in the streets of our country. These things don’t sit well with investors. We need to exercise discipline. We need to have social cohesion, and we need to speak in one voice when we address the matter of AGOA and the continuation of the trade relationship between South Africa and the U.S.
Linda van Tilburg (15:12.984)
What is your chamber doing to try to mitigate this crisis? Are you trying to engage with the US government?
Neil Diamond (15:23.022)
Linda, I can be frank with you. This last week has been a roller coaster ride. When we saw some challenges unfolding, literally Sunday last week, we were confident that we would be reaching out to our contacts and those relationships we have on the Hill, on Capitol Hill, between the congressmen and the senators, the contacts that we still have at the White House. But events have surpassed actions.
I’ll be heading back to DC tomorrow morning where I’ll be spending the week meeting with the relations that we have. But at the moment, I’m getting a bit of a cold shoulder, and that is disappointing because where South Africa was the darling of Capitol Hill a couple of years back, we’re not occupying that space anymore. I’m not convinced that as business, we can pull this through by ourselves. We need government support with us.
We’re going to continue to lobby for South African business and the inclusion of South African business and the promotion of South African business. That is our core mandate, and that’s what our membership expects of us because they represent South African business interests in the United States. But we take hands with our counterparts at AmCham in South Africa. They represent US business interests in South Africa, and as a business, we’ve got a strong voice in the United States, maybe stronger than what we have in South Africa, but this is something we couldn’t do alone.
We need to get the government’s backing, and we actually need to see government taking the lead on this one. That’s why we’ve continued to encourage our leaders in both countries to embark on constructive connections with one another, constructive dialogues through which they can address the tension in our relationship because it is having an adverse effect on the trade and investment landscape.
Investor confidence is not where it should be with political instability. Investors want a stable environment where governments seem to get along, even though there are various national agendas at play. At least the business landscape should be stable enough for a free flow of capital, and that is not there at the moment.
Linda van Tilburg (17:46.965)
If there’s one key message that you could give to President Cyril Ramaphosa, what would that be?
Neil Diamond (17:53.314)
President Ramaphosa, on behalf of the business community in the United States that represents South African interests, it is our request that you join us in the United States for a roundtable discussion with the US President and the Secretary of State, not to be bullied, but to set the table for a continuation of a historically very well-balanced relationship. I think, at the moment, we are talking past one another, and we know that with the leadership of President Ramaphosa and the leadership of our Minister of International Relations, Ronald Lamola, this matter could be smoothed over. It’s time to communicate, and that is our request.
Linda van Tilburg (18:42.799)
Mr. Trump has always been described as transactional. What could South Africa place on the table to change his mind?
Neil Diamond (18:53.518)
South Africa is a very important geopolitical player, and if we look at our geographical positioning in Africa but also being the largest trading partner of the United States in Africa, the US being our second-largest trading partner globally, there’s a lot that we could do, as President Trump puts it, to make the deal work. So, we must also acknowledge our president is also a billionaire, a dealmaker in his own rights, and he happens to be a very good golfer. Maybe President Trump and President Ramaphosa need a round of golf at Trump International in New York to have a discussion around this.
But I think they are on the same page; they speak the same language; they understand things the same because of their business background. There’s a lot of noise happening around us, and I think we are trying to play it out as if it’s our relationship with individuals. The US is focusing on those relationships with other countries.
As a sovereign nation. South Africa has got the right and should always defend the right to have relations wherever they are within the world, historically and in the future. But at the same time, we don’t have to push that narrative every time we engage the United States
I’m sure you’ve got a group of friends, like I’ve got a group of friends, and not all my friends always get along. When I have a cocktail party, I kind of try not to invite two guys that do not like one another to the same party. It doesn’t normally go down well. I think in this regard; we are trying to bring friends to the cocktail party that is not necessarily enjoyed by the host and vice versa.
I think one should maybe align our narrative to the audience in which we are engaging, not saying we should have different messages for China than what we have for the United States. What I am saying is that the relationship with China is not reflective of the relationship with the United States, and we need to maintain those relations.
Something we never speak about is tourism. In 2021, the US overtook all other countries. As the country that sends the most tourists to South Africa, a position that they’ve held in 22, 23, and 24. As we know, tourism is business, and tourism brings in a lot of foreign dollars into our country. We need to ensure that we get our relationship in place, that the average US citizen is also comfortable to continue coming to our country and to spend tourist dollars in South Africa.
Read also:
- đ SONA 25: Ramaphosa states that South Africa wonât be bullied by Trump
- De Beer: Implosion of race hate as SA hits tipping point after Trumpâs âdynamite bombâ
- Magda Wierzycka on SAâs global positioning, investment trends, and the Trump effect
